Coffee - Where have you bean all my life?

If you haven't yet discovered the pulling power of hot drinks in pubs, it's time you woke up and smelled the coffee, writes Graham Ridout

In the past decade coffee has come from nowhere to be a nice little earner for the pub trade. Coffee has been a mainstay

for food-led pubs, but there has been an inexorable rise in the quality of the offering. Even hard-drinking dens are joining the coffee revolution. There are a lot of factors

driving coffee's uptake: changing lifestyles, healthier living, avoiding drink-driving, and a general appreciation that not everyone wants an alcoholic drink when in a pub.

Mike Ritchie, sales manager for machine supplier Allied Drink Systems, says: "There has been a huge growth in the pub market. Drinking coffee is now deemed acceptable even in pubs where the only food on offer is a packet of crisps."

Paul Freeman, Douwe Egberts' espresso brand manager, takes a similar view. "We certainly see coffee playing a vital supporting role for pubs and many pubs are already starting to realise how an improved coffee offer can work in their favour," he says.

"With a large majority of the population having experienced good quality speciality coffees on the high street, the expectation is now for more venues to offer something other than a regular black coffee."

Freeman says licensees should look at their current coffee offering and ask "whether it meets the increasing expectations of customers". He says that the correct presentation of coffee is another important factor. Again, licensees should question whether their crockery matches customer expectations. They should also consider how the

sugar is presented - there's a choice of loose, lumps or sachets - and whether to include added value items, such as biscuits, chocolates, truffles, or marshmallows.

Freeman also advises that the type of coffee machine selected will have a bearing on the skill levels required from staff. "Think about bean-to-cup machines that will make

speciality coffee more achievable. If you want to use a traditional espresso machine, which will really add to creating a more serious coffee environment, then maybe

consider using espresso 'pods' that make the process much simpler for non-specialist staff.

"Alternatively, with more and more coffee companies offering basic barista training, there is scope to add value to the business by training certain members of staff."

Ritchie says that the quality now available from bean-to-cup machines means that good coffee is no longer the sole domain

of a barista.

For those who want a simpler solution, Ritchie suggests soluble drinks machines. "They are easy to use and maintain and in 12 seconds you can have a cappuccino that only costs you 10p to make. They will make other types of coffee, espressos and lattes, and hot chocolate and there's a stream of boiling water if you want to make tea."

Around 80% of the machines supplied by ADS are on lease rental because licensees can claim 100% tax relief, whereas

only 50% relief is available for purchase agreements. "A weekly lease varies from £16.95 to £39.95, depending on the type of machine, so you don't have to sell that many drinks before the machine is paying for itself," Ritchie points out.

A final pointer from Ritchie is: "A clean machine is a happy machine. Therefore you do have to clean them regularly, especially the milk pipelines."